Project Grant R18AP00117

The Rio Grande Water Conservation District in Alamosa, Colorado will develop a water marketing strategy and conduct outreach with local groundwater management subdistricts to maintain agricultural production and prevent permanent dry-up of historically irrigated lands in the San Luis Valley. Funded by a $425,511 project grant awarded on May 10, 2022 from the Department of the Interior Bureau of Reclamation's WaterSMART program, the District will analyze potential water rights for participation...

The Bureau of Reclamation awarded a $2,214,625 WaterSMART (CFDA 15.507) grant to The Colorado Rio Grande Restoration Foundation (CRGRF), in partnership with the San Luis Valley Irrigation District, to improve diversion infrastructure on the Farmers Union Canal and Rio Grande 1 Ditch near Del Norte, CO. The project aims to construct a new multi-benefit diversion structure that will provide safe fish and boat passage, enhance aquatic and riparian habitat, and deliver reliable irrigation water to...

The Lefthand Watershed Oversight Group received a $299,196 Cooperative Watershed Management Program grant from the Bureau of Reclamation to expand existing watershed management planning within the St. Vrain watershed in Colorado. The group will develop a wildfire risk assessment, conduct a watershed-scale analysis, and identify, prioritize, and develop two to three key river restoration projects that complement ongoing forest mitigation efforts. The project aims to address the impacts of climate...

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) awarded a $500,000 Cooperative Agreement under its Aquatic Resources Management program (CFDA 15.244) to RIO Grande Return, a non-profit organization, to employ low-tech process-based restoration techniques across several degraded stream systems and wetland habitats totaling over 3,000 acres in New Mexico. The project aims to remove non-native and invasive species, plant native riparian and wetland vegetation, construct and repair exclosures and wildlife...

This U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Region 6 Cooperative Agreement award, valued at $100,000 and effective from July 2024 to July 2029, will support Trout Unlimited, Inc. in removing and replacing a road stream crossing structure on Middle Placer Creek in Colorado. This project aims to improve aquatic organism passage and provide access to 10 miles of high-quality stream habitat for native Rio Grande fishes, including Rio Grande cutthroat trout and Rio Grande...

The Santa Cruz Irrigation District in Santa Cruz, New Mexico will establish a watershed group and develop a holistic watershed restoration and management plan through a $200,000 project grant from the Bureau of Reclamation's Cooperative Watershed Management Program. The watershed group will complete sedimentation modeling, post-fire debris flow analysis, and identify critical areas for watershed thinning and habitat improvement projects. It will also recruit diverse stakeholders to determine...

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded a $702,000 Cooperative Agreement under the National Fish Passage Program (CFDA 15.685) to the Colorado Department of Natural Resources to replace a culvert on Cherry Creek in the La Plata River watershed. The project will remove the existing culvert, which currently blocks fish passage, and install a bottomless concrete box structure to facilitate upstream movement of native fish species including bluehead sucker, flannelmouth sucker, and roundtail...

The U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation awarded a $3,413,946 Project Grant under the WaterSMART (Sustain and Manage America's Resources for Tomorrow) grant program (CFDA 15.507) to the Purgatoire Watershed Partnership, Inc., a non-profit organization in Trinidad, Colorado. The funding will support the Purgatoire River Fish Passage Project, which aims to install a natural riffle ramp fishway into the Baca-Picketwire Diversion Dam on the Purgatoire River. This will allow...

The purpose of this $332,542.14 Cooperative Agreement awarded by the Bureau of Reclamation under the Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Endangered Fish Recovery program (CFDA 15.529) is to monitor endangered small-bodied razorback suckers and Colorado pikeminnow in New Mexico. The project aims to determine if reproduction is occurring, locate nursery areas, and gauge the extent of annual reproduction. The data collected will provide information to the San Juan River Recovery Implementation...

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation awarded the Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed (CPRW), a non-profit organization in Fort Collins, Colorado, a $270,170 Project Grant under the Cooperative Watershed Management Program (CFDA 15.554) on September 16, 2024. The grant funds will be used to complete 80% design plans for the restoration of Reach 16 on the lower Cache La Poudre River. The project aims to reconnect the river to its floodplain, reduce flooding risk, and enhance instream habitat....